A California investment firm claims it is owed $11.7 million in consulting fees for introducing the predecessor of Massachusetts marijuana multistate operator Curaleaf to an Oregon vape oil company.
Beverly Hills, California-based Arcadian Capital argues in a federal court lawsuit that it is owed 3% of Curaleaf’s recent $390 million acquisition of Portland-based Cura Partners, which is known for its Select vaping products.
Cura Partners denies the validity of the claim, calling the consulting contract a sham because Arcadian provided no services.
Arcadian bases its claim on a 2018 consulting agreement with Cura Partners that it says was not canceled.
According to the lawsuit, Arcadian made an introduction that led to an initial $13 million investment in Cura Partners by PalliaTech, which later changed its name to Curaleaf.
Arcadian said it received a consulting fee of $390,000 in the spring of 2018 for that introduction but should be paid consulting fees for the Curaleaf-Cura Partners merger as well.